David Edwardsen, a former Terrace man convicted of 14 drug and firearm charges, has been granted authorization to travel outside Canada.
Edwardsen can only travel outside of the country to a specific location and period of time, for approved purposes — information that is not disclosed in the Parole Board of Canada decision. Edwardsen was granted full parole in 2020 after serving about two years of an eight year-sentence.
Edwardsen, now 57, was arrested in 2012 following an RCMP undercover investigation, during which he sold cocaine and cannabis to undercover officers on several occasions. Police executed search warrants on Edwardsen’s house on Old Lakelse Lake Rd. and several other residences connected with Edwardsen. They found significant quantities of cocaine, ecstasy, magic mushrooms and cannabis. They also seized several handguns and 110 long guns from the properties.
Although Edwardsen was initially arrested in 2012, his trial didn’t begin in earnest until 2017, and he spent much of that time out of custody on bail. He was convicted of the 14 charges in 2017 and in 2018 he was sentenced to eight years in jail, minus 389 days for time already served.
READ MORE: Former Terrace man gets full parole on drug, weapons convictions
The Terrace Standard has obtained a document from the Parole Board of Canada outlining the reasons for granting Edwardsen authorization to travel.
The document states that the parole board does not believe the authorization will put the public at an “undue level of risk.”
“The board finds that you meet the criteria for out of country travel. More specifically, while it is clear that your index offences were very serious, there has been no indication of any return to the factors and circumstances that contributed to the index offence,” the decision reads.
“According to your file you remain engaged in your correctional plan, are open and honest in your supervision meetings, are noted to be in compliance with your special conditions, and have not presented as a supervision concern.”
Edwardsen was initially released on day parole in January 2020 and placed in a halfway house in south-central B.C. as part of a gradual return to the community.
The parole board placed two conditions on Edwardsen’s release: he is prohibited from associating with anyone involved in criminal activity or substance abuse, and he is required to provide ongoing financial information to his parole supervisor. (He is also prohibited from owning firearms for 10 years, a condition placed upon him when he was sentenced in 2018.)
That first condition was breached in April 2021, according to the parole board, during an incident when one of Edwardsen’s friends overdosed on drugs and died.
“However, police information indicates you were not responsible for providing your friend with the drugs and there is no information to suggest you are involved in the drug sub-culture in your community. You also claimed you did not know this person was a drug user,” the parole board document states.
“As a result, the board is satisfied that the matter was appropriately addressed and there are no outstanding concerns or needs that would impact the current decision.”
The document is partially redacted and contains no mention of Edwardsen’s current location or where he plans to travel outside of Canada.
– with files from Quinn Bender, Margaret Speirs and Jake Wray.
